Are portal networks a commodity now?

[Arkhainn]

@deenw

A total noob could access higher tier planets within a couple of weeks if he knew what he was doing. I know of multiple players who have done this. I have a difficult time believing that the devs intended this.

I can’t really navigate the search feature on this particular forum software very well, but I could find at least one relevant quote:

Continuing the discussion from Welcome to the Launch Universe!:

@SamF

From today, everything you build, craft, mine, forge, and discover in Boundless will be ready for our new players at 1.0. The planets are empty and waiting at the moment - so the opportunity is there to claim land, build capital cities, and get your shops set up for launch. Personally, I can’t wait to see New Therka Market spring up.

It doesn’t mention portal networks specifically, but I do recall that the dev team mentioned at some point that they wanted the early access backers to build up all the infrastructure so that the 1.0 players would have access to it, making their early game less painful. It was sort of a challenge issued to the backers that participated in the headstart. This included portal networks.

I’m sure someone more proficient than I with the forum search could fetch some quotes to that effect.
So I really doubt that portal networks are something that surprised the devs, or went against their intended course of player progression. And if it did, I’ll happily admit that I was wrong.

Would be interesting if a dev could chime in. @james is an avid forum reader if I recall, it would be cool if he (or anyone from the dev team) would chime in on this.